Even In Death
by StrawberryBananas
Summary: Tenten has always loved Neji, and she always will. But what about in death?


A/N: Okay, this is my first fic and I'm kinda nervous. Hope you enjoy!!

The pain was horrible, more than I imagined it would ever be. I held back the sob that threatened to escape my lips. No more. I didn't want to do this anymore.

Take me! Take me away!

I turned my face toward the heavens. The angry black clouds could be seen even through the veil of night, and the trees bent with the force of the wind. There was a single crack, as if the sky itself was splitting in half, and thick raindrops poured down. They splashed onto my face like sharp needles, and I let the sob go.

I was exhausted. Physically, mentally, emotionally. You name it, and I was it.

This was all his fault. I was broken because of him. I was willing to die here because of him.

That damn Neji Hyuuga had chosen that girl over me. I wanted so badly to hate her for what she did. For what she had taken from me. But I couldn't.

She was so beautiful, stunningly so. Dark ebony curls, crystal blue eyes, flawless porcelain skin. Compared to my straight brown hair and my mud colored eyes and scarred skin, she was the diamond, and I was the rock. To add to that, she was an amazingly gentle soul and very feminine and proper, something I was not. How could I compete with that? I couldn't. There was no more competition. She had already won.

I loved him with all of my being, and I still do. She does too but not the way I do. He was my inspiration, my role model, my world, my life. But he never so much as looked my way.

When I had gone, who would miss me? Sakura, my dearest friend, had finally claimed the heart of the Uchiha. The two were near inseparable.

Ino had Shikamaru now. They were too absorbed in eachother to notice anyone else, much less me.

Sweet, wonderful Hinata was married now, to the Kyuubi vessel himself. Naruto was good to her, and they were expecting their first child.

Lee was busy with missions now. We hardly ever spoke.

I had no family. I was alone in this world and would be until the day I died, which, thankfully, was today.

I wanted to see him though. Before I left this world I wanted to tell him goodbye, but this was as good as it would get.

Shame hit me with a powerful force. I was a kunoichi. I should be fighting to live, not preparing myself for death.

All my life I had never been good enough, strong enough. This shouldn't disappoint anyone or surprise them in the least.

Did I want to die?

Yes, I did. I couldn't go on watching them be so happy when it should be me.

I deserved it. I deserved it more than anyone. I'd done my best my whole life. I'd strived to get things that were unattainable. My best wasn't always _**the**_ best out there, but I'd sure as hell done everything I could to get as close to that as possible.

So why had I always been the one to go unrewarded? Didn't I at least deserve an answer?

No, I had always been insignificant and unimportant. My whole life had been that way.

No one had ever truly understood me, except him. He understood what it was like to hate life because it was completely unfair. He understood what it was like to feel so completely alone, even when you're surrounded by hundreds of people.

Now would he understand how I feel?

No, because he wasn't the one alone and dying in the middle of a forest.

How had I gotten here again? I forgot.

Oh yes, I was ambushed and separated from my ANBU team: Sakura, Neji, Naruto, and I.

The mission was simple: escort a maiden to some village and retrieve a couple scrolls while we're at it.

We were near Konoha when we had been ambushed by several grass nin. All I can remember was suddenly realizing that the others were nowhere near and I was left to fight off two grass nin.

The first one had gone done easy, and I sustained only a gash to my shoulder. The second one, however, had been more difficult to bring down. We fought for quite a while, neither one of us relenting.

Somehow, I'd ended up with a sword through my stomach and with my last bit of strength, pulled it out and slit the grass nin's throat.

I suddenly realized how much I would miss everybody, especially him, and screamed in anguish. A large bolt of lightning lit the sky, and the thunder continued on with its booming growls and snarls.

My sobs mingled with the thunder and the wind, forming a melancholy song. And I listened intently to that song, learning it by heart. My broken, shattered heart.

Gradually, my sobs began to fade, but the thunder and earsplitting cracks of lightning continued to play their tune.

The pain had spread to my entire body, and I prayed for it to just take me all ready. Put me out of my misery!

Why would I continue to live anyway? To watch Neji and that girl get married and start their own family?

That thought only deepened the ache in my heart. She had taken my dream, and he had never come close to giving it to me.

"Neji," I said aloud to myself.

The name rolled off my tongue beautifully. It even tasted sweet. No, that was the blood that I tasted. Bittersweet, as most things in my life had been.

"Tenten! Tenten!"

Voices, there were voices. But whose?

Through the patter of the rain, I heard running feet squelching in the mud. Then, a hand touched my face.

"Tenten," Sakura's shaky voice broke through my hazy thoughts. "Oh, thank Kami. Hold on, okay? I'm going to heal you."

My eyes snapped open, and I reached up to grab her hand. She stared at me in shock and confusion.

"Stop, Sakura," I said weakly. "You won't have enough chakra to heal me. You're going to pass out from chakra exhaustion. Leave me."

"What?" she hissed. "Ten, you're delusional. You don't even know what you're saying."

"I do," I whispered. "I do know what I'm saying."

Her emerald eyes suddenly filled with tears, and she shook her head furiously, splaying drops of water everywhere.

"Just," I continued and had to stop and clutch my stomach and grit my teeth. "Just tell everyone I'm going to miss them. Please. Will you just do that for me?" I paused, overcome by grief. "And…and will you tell Neji I love him. He doesn't know it, but I love him with all of me."

"You tell him yourself," Sakura said as tears spilled sown her cheeks. "How can you do this, Tenten? You can't just die here. What about the rest of us? Don't you care how the rest of us are going to be? He's not the only reason you have to live. We all love you."

Guilty tears burned my eyes, and I let loose a strangled sob. "Please, Sakura," I begged. "Let me die. You know exactly how it feels to love someone who doesn't love you back."

Understanding and pain flashed through her eyes, but she shook her head once more. "I know, but I kept on going and look where it got me."

She slapped her hands together, and they were illuminated with a pale green glow. The look of determination in her eyes made me cry harder, and she pressed her hands to my stomach. My cries of protest didn't stop her. It had only been a second when she collapsed beside me. Fear jumped into my throat, but I relaxed when I saw that she was breathing.

"Tenten! Sakura!" came Naruto's cry, and a heavy body dropped down beside me. "Sakura's fine. Neji, we need to get Tenten to Konoha now!"

Strong arms lifted me from the muddy ground, and I stared into the face of my love.

"Go," Naruto ordered. "Sakura will be awake in a few minutes."

Then, Neji was off, hurdling through the forest at a rapid speed. Sometime during the fight, my buns had unwound themselves, and my hair now fell limply. I clung to his ANBU vest, trying to ignore the pain that seemed to be getting worse by the second.

"Neji," I said faintly, but he ignored me. "Neji."

"Shutup, Tenten," he ordered. "Save your breath."

"Neji, I'm not going to make it."

That seemed to get to him because he stopped abruptly and stared at me. Though my eyes were hazy, I could see his eyes sweep over me.

"Please," I continued. "Just stop moving."

Unlike Sakura, he did what I requested and went to sit under a large tree. He held me in arms, never once looking away from my face. We were shielded from the harsh onslaught of the rain, and I relished in being so close to him. I decided to be audacious and pressed my ear to his chest.

"Tenten," he asked, his voice quivering. "What are you doing?"

I smiled and turned my eyes to him. "I'm listening," I replied softly. "To your heart. It's wonderful to actually be able to hear life."

His eyes weren't hard or disgusted as I expected them to be, but serious and almost understanding.

He suddenly pressed his hand over my breast, where my heart should be located, and my breath caught.

"What are you doing?" I asked hoarsely, and he shut his eyes.

"Feeling life," he answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

A single tear rolled down my face, and he softly wiped it away, his thumb lingering on my cheek. Never in my life had I felt so perfectly happy. This moment, this man, was so unbelievably beautiful to me, and I felt my heart soar to new heights.

"You know everyone's going to miss you," he said, and I nodded.

"I know."

"You know I'm going to miss you."

My voice, this time, shook and wavered dangerously. "I know."

And in that one moment where I felt my heart begin to slow down and my body growing lighter, I felt his heart begin to speed up. I clung to him until my last breath escaped me, never wanting to separate from the constant thrum of his heart. For even in death, I would love him.

A/N: There you go. Go a bit easy on me but constructive criticism is welcome. I couldn't decide on a happy ending or a sad one but, the sad one out in the end (obviously lol) NejiTen is the cutest pairing! I luv it!


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